Today’s Tipsheet: Macy’s Cuts 5K | Wmart Greeters on Gun Patrol | Target’s Jones on CES Panel | Gov Appoints Ex-Costco Exec

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Costco December Comp +1% / +5% “Costco reported net sales of $12.45 billion for the month of December, the five weeks endedJanuary 3, 2016, an increase of three percent from $12.13 billion during the similar period last year.” Read the release

 

Marks & Spencer CEO Bolland Out After Holiday Season Disaster by Geoffrey Smith at Fortune. “…same-store sales had fallen 5.8% in the crucial third quarter of its fiscal year…Part of the reason for the poor performance was M&S’s refusal to join a stampede of discounting ahead of the festive season…” Read more

 

Greeters at Texas Wal-Marts have gone from giving stickers to checking gun licenses by Lauren Etter & Shannon Pettypiece at Bloomberg via Dallas Morning News. “Cashiers or door greeters who see someone with a gun are to alert the highest- ranking employee, who is to approach the customer and ask to see the paperwork.” Read more

 

Rick Harrison of TV’s ‘Pawn Stars’ goes big with new Pawn Plaza in Las Vegas by Jay Jones at LA Times. “Pawn Plaza, Harrison’s new strip mall, recently opened along Las Vegas Boulevard just south of the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop. The store sometimes draws thousands of visitors a day.” Read more

 

MACY’S TO CUT 5,000 JOBS – Closing 40 stores – sales dip 5.2% by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati Enquirer. “Macy’s said it will record a $200 million charge for its fourth quarter in connection with the restructuring. The company also continues to explore its options for its mall-based stores and flagship real estate in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Minneapolis.” Read more | Read the release

 

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Amazon to Sell Its Own Brand of Chips Next to Wipes, USB Cables by Jack Clark at Bloomberg. Read more

 

TARGET’S JEFF JONES APPEARS ON CES PANEL – An audience member asked why, after all these years, marketers still send him so much paper he doesn’t want. Jeff Jones, chief marketing officer of Target, responded that for all the hoopla over digital marketing—and he’s a fan of it—old-fashioned techniques like coupons, Sunday inserts, and catalogs still deliver great value to marketers. Consumers, it turns out, like them. Via Adam Lashinsky at Forbes

 

Gilt Groupe to Announce Sale to Saks Fifth Avenue Owner as Soon as Thursday Morning by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Gilt Groupe is finalizing a deal to sell to Saks Fifth Avenue’s parent company for $250 million…The buyer, Hudson’s Bay Company…” Read more

 

Walgreens Boots Alliance Leadership to Participate at 34th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference Read the release

 

RETIRED COSTCO EXEC RECOGNIZED – Governor Appoints Retired Costco Exec to Univ. of Washington Board of Regents by Ashley Stewart at Puget Sound Business Journal. “Gov. Jay Inslee appointed retired Costco executive Joel Benoliel and re-appointed Microsoft executive Joanne Harrell on Tuesday to serve six-year terms on the University of Washington Board of Regents.” Read more

 

40% of millennials have used a pawnshop or payday lender by Jillian Berman at MarketWatch. Read more

 

One Kings Lane, Once Valued at $900 Million, is Likely to Sell for Fraction of That by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “One Kings Lane, the online seller of furniture and home decor that has struggled for the better part of the last two years, has been running a process to sell the company for several months, four sources told Re/code.” Read more

 

Lowe’s Holoroom Helps Customers Visualize the Room of Their Dreams with Virtual Reality Read the release

 

Retail Chief Angela Ahrendts Remains Apple’s Top-Paid Executive, Bringing in $25.8 Million in 2015 by Dawn Chmielewski at Recode. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Fortune: 100 Companies That Are Hiring Like Crazy Right Now (Sears #10, Rite Aid #28)

Wal-Mart worker loses arm in Pa. warehouse mishap

CNBC: For Nordstrom, best in class won’t cut it: Analyst

Intel launches x-ray-like glasses that allow wearers to ‘see inside’ objects

Chicago Tribune: Who will win America’s worst employer contest? 

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Today’s Tipsheet: Ex-Target Exec to Dominos | Brewer MLK Speech | Wayfair HQ +100K SQ FT | Lowe’s Exec ‘Most Innovative’

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Former Target human resources exec Judy Werthauser lands at Domino’s by Jonathan Maze at Restaurant News. “Werthauser will report directly to Domino’s CEO Patrick Doyle and will join the company immediately. She will oversee human resources organization and maintain a “people-first culture” at company-owned units that employ a total of 12,000 people.” Read more

 

Apple Stores to Expand in Latin America, Starting With Mexico City by Joe Rossignol at MacRumors. “The tipster claims the first Mexico City store will be located in the upscale Via Santa Fe area of Centro Santa Fe, the largest shopping mall in Latin America, while the second store will allegedly be in a prominent shopping district and adopt Apple’s next-generation store design used in Brussels, Cupertino, Dubai and elsewhere.” Read more

 

SHE’S BACK – Ronda Rousey to Host ‘Saturday Night Live’ by James Montgomery at Rolling Stone. “Musical guest Selena Gomez will join Rousey on the January 23 episode of SNL.” Read more

 

Terry Lundgren Contends With Activist Investors at Macy’s by David Moin/Evan Clark/Sharon Edelson at WWD. “In 2008-09, there were similar cries, that retail and the fashion world is coming to an end — we got through it. People are now once again saying that.” (Lundgren) concedes, “This time it’s different.” Read more

 

MasterCard Pushes Into the Refrigerator by Leena Rao at Fortune. “Groceries are delivered by FreshDirect and the supermarket chain ShopRite at a selected time…For now, the service is only available in New York and the Northeast.” Read more

 

Rosalind Brewer to Give Keynote Speech at MLK Event “The Northwest Arkansas Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Council will hold its 20th annual Recommitment Banquet at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 18 in the Fayetteville Town Center as the final event in the local celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.” Read more

 

Lowe’s exec recognized as among ‘most innovative’ retail leaders by Katherine Peralta at Charlotte Observer. “Kyle Nel is the executive director of Lowe’s Innovation Labs, the retailer’s technology hub launched in 2014…Other executives recognized include Stella & Dot CEO Jessica Herrin, Tory Burch LLC co-CEO Tory Burch and Ulta Beauty CEO Mary Dillon.” Read more

 

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The owner of CNN and TNT wants to transform commercial breaks into 3-minute-long native ads by Lara O’Reilly at Business Insider. Read more

 

EPA says study of major pesticide finds chemical harms honeybees when used on some crops but not on others by Seth Borenstein at AP via Star Tribune. “A major pesticide harms honeybees when used on cotton and citrus but not on other big crops like corn, berries and tobacco, the Environmental Protection Agency found.” Read more

 

Ex-Home Depot VP Appointed CFO at Hancock Fabrics “The Board appointed Rebecca I. Flick as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.” Read the release

 

Petco Launches $2.5B Leveraged Loan Backing LBO by Kerry Kantin at Forbes. Read more

 

With extension of board of directors nominations, has Cabela’s been given a little ‘breathing room’? by Paige Yowell at Omaha World-Herald. “Cabela’s on Tuesday said it would delay the 30-day window during which shareholders can nominate people to its board of directors. The move is a sign, some Wall Streeters say, of a number of possible scenarios…” Read more

 

LeBron’s wife closing Miami juice shop by Ethan J. Skolnick at Miami Herald. “The James family is now looking to open a store in the Cleveland area.” Read more

 

Amazon Added 500,000 Items to Prime in Six Months by Changing One Key Policy by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Known as “seller-fulfilled Prime,” the new program allows businesses that sell goods on Amazon to qualify their products for Prime two-day shipping without warehousing those goods with Amazon.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Boston: Wayfair to grow its Boston headquarters space by 40% this year

CNBC: New Year’s resolutions a boon for these retailers

After Fan Backlash, Hasbro Says Female Character Will Be Added to Monopoly Later This Year

How Women Secretly Won the Hobby Lobby Fight

Dolce & Gabbana is catering to a soon-to-be $484 billion market most retailers ignore

Minnesota company recalls Wal-Mart brand beef that could contain wood

Trader Joe’s tuna fish cans are underfilled: lawsuit

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Today’s Tipsheet: Target’s Tyler Gets $3 Mil on Exit | Ford/Amazon Partnership | LaBelle Launches Two More

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Target Fires Stores Chief in Latest C-Suite Shake-up by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “Tina Tyler will be replaced by Janna Potts, a longtime Target employee who most recently worked in human resources but who previously was a senior vice president for store operations for a decade.” Read more

 

…Tyler will be paid $3 million if she agrees not to work for a Target competitor for the next three years by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. Read more

 

Ford Partners With Amazon to Make Cars That Talk to Everything by Mark Bergen & Kara Swisher at Recode. “Some scenarios he raised include starting your car or checking your gas level from the Echo system, or accessing the home-security system from your car.” Read more

 

Forbes: Meet the retail and e-commerce 30 Under 30 class of 2016 by Clare O’Connor. Read more / See the list

 

Trader Joe’s 7th Annual Customer Choice Awards “Favorite Overall: Speculoos Cookie Butter, Mandarin Orange Chicken, The Trader Joe’s Crew, Joe’s Diner Mac ‘n Cheese, Unexpected Cheddar Cheese…Favorite Produce: Bananas, Avocados, Honey Crisp Apples, Brussels Sprouts, Haricots Verts…” See the 12 categories

 

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Patti LaBelle Launches Two New Cakes At Walmart by Venessa Wong at BuzzFeed. “LaBelle and Walmart are together again to launch two new products in January: a vanilla pound cake and a caramel cake…” Read more

 

Walgreens, CVS Want Doctors’ Medicare Pay To Vaccinate by Bruce Japsen at Forbes. “Under legislation that is gaining rare bipartisan support and momentum in the U.S. House and Senate, particularly for a Congressional health bill, pharmacists would be paid to administer vaccines under Medicare part B” Read more

 

Target has right to sell Rosa Parks biographies, commemorative plaque by Eugene Volokh at Washington Post. “In the process, the court announced yet another test for right-of-publicity cases, alongside the many others adopted by other courts — one might call it the “public interest” test.” Read more

 

…LITIGIOUS HEIRS – The most famous case was against the hip-hop group Outkast, who in their song, intoned, “Ah-ha, hush that fuss. Everybody move to the back of the bus. by Eriq Gardner at The Hollywood Reporter. Read more

 

CVS Health To Present At J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Jan. 12th Read the release

 

Feds blow past deadline for dietary guidelines by Lydia Wheeler at The Hill. Read more

 

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Lowe’s Announces Professional Monitoring for Iris Smart Home Solution “For the first time, Iris customers, who are either homeowners or renters, will have the ability for emergency responders to be dispatched to their homes in the event of an intrusion, smoke, carbon monoxide or panic alarms…” Read the release

 

CES kicks off with prediction that global tech sales will fall 2% this year by Andrea Chang at LA Times. Read more

 

Wegmans Ditches HBW Products With Polyethylene Microbeads at Progressive Grocer. “The manufacturers of these items are already reformulating ingredients to exclude microbeads, according to the grocer, with many expected to be completed quickly although some skin care products could take as much as a year…” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

America’s Richest Family Gave Away $407 Million in Walmart Shares

Putin perfume on sale in Moscow

Nestle bottled water operations under investigation amid California drought

The damning evidence against Steven Avery that Netflix’s Making a Murder excluded

Amazon’s Other App Store, Alexa’s “Skills” Section, Has Quietly Grown To Over 130 Apps

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Today’s Tipsheet: Ex-REI Chairman Killed in Avalanche | Amazon Launches Buy Now/Pay Later | CES Shifts Focus | Cool Spring Adds to Woes

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Former REI Chairman of the Board Killed in Avalanche by Becky Monk at Puget Sound Business Journal. “The REI co-op community is devastated to learn of Doug Walker’s death on Granite Mountain. The REI board of directors, management and the entire organization send their heartfelt condolences to Doug’s family,” REI said in a statement. “With any spare time he had, Doug would head to the mountains.” Read more

 

LA TIMES: CES shifts its focus to innovations changing the tech industry by Andrea Chang. “CES ballooned into an overwhelming crush of products, press events and panels in recent years…Bejeweled smartphone cases shared space with vibrating forks, Wi-Fi-connected washing machines were displayed alongside the latest pair of celebrity-backed headphones…There will be less emphasis on the typical CES electronics like televisions, tablets and smartphones, and more attention paid to industry-changing innovations such as connected, electric and driverless cars; the Internet of Things; drones; virtual reality and gaming; and entertainment tech.” Read more

 

NY TIMES: Girl Scout Cookie Sales Go Digital, With Help From Visa and Dell by Elizabeth Olson. “This is Visa’s initial collaboration with the Girl Scouts, and its Visa Checkout payments system can be used for processing online cookie sales…By 2018, Dell hopes to supply nearly 4,000 girls from underprivileged communities with laptops and tablets.” Read more

 

UK: Amazon to launch buy now, pay later service for customers at The Sun. “Anyone spending £400 in one go — on multiple items or just one — can apply to pay over four years without laying down a deposit. Amazon Pay Monthly, which launches later this month, will charge 16.9 per cent interest.” Read more

 

COOL SPRING FORECAST ADDS TO RETAILERS’ WOES – A $500M hit and a bleak forecast for retail by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. “Further adding to retailers’ woes are predictions that spring will get off to an unusually cool start across much of the country, which could cause an even bigger blow to apparel sales than the warm December.” Read more

 

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Target’s turnaround plan works to get shoppers back into stores by Anne D’Innocenzio at AP via Star Tribune. “Take Annabel Bernardo, who once bought trendy clothes at Target but cut back after she felt it lost its fashion edge. Now, Bernardo, who lives in Rockville, Maryland, is back: “The store is looking much better. It’s looking more upscale.” Read more

 

Whirlpool’s new smart appliances have Amazon Dash built in by Rich McCormick at The Verge. “The app, which runs on iOS and Android, will let you buy regularly used items with one click directly from your mobile device.” Read more

 

MAN WANTS OWN WIKIPEDIA PAGE SAYING HE’S THE ONE WHO GOT RID OF THE DRYER – This Apple Alum Wants to Kill the Clothes Dryer by Keith Barry at Reviewed.com. “Since it’s expected to retail for just $1,199—roughly the cost of a high-end washing machine alone—Reid says many customers could buy two. “If you were planning to buy a washer and dryer pair, you could get the same laundry throughput with a quarter of the trips to the laundry room.” Read more

 

AMAZON READIES FIRST CINCINNATI STORE – Amazon store on Univ. of Cincinnati campus primed for grand opening by Bowdeya Tweh. “The company and university officials are holding a ceremony Thursday at 11 a.m. to mark the location’s opening.” Read more

 

From Digital Disappointment ToThe End Of The App Era, Here Are Eight Trends For 2016 by Tom Goodwin at TechCrunch. “Horizontalization And Platforms – A whole new world of businesses are built on the idea of owning the customer interface. We’ve Airbnb, Seamless, Facebook, Alibaba, Uber…Large CPG brands could aim to supply direct to the customer using their brand as that interface.” Read more

 

Walmart Adds MasterPass to Online and Mobile Checkout “MasterPass by MasterCard is a digital payments platform that enhances the online and mobile checkout process.” Read the release

 

DAILY MAIL ON JEFF BEZOS – The tax-avoiding ‘Bond villain’ who’s trying to take over the world by Tom Leonard. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

NY Post: Target seeks ‘friendlier venue’ in federal court for injury claim

Why Starbucks Sold Out of Those $200 Swarovski Gift Cards

Walmart Sr. Buyer Seafood: Meet the Fishpeople Keeping Seafood, and Jobs, Local

HBR: Diversity Policies Don’t Help Women or Minorities, and They Make White Men Feel Threatened

Google’s Schmidt says this nation leads e-commerce

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